# Fake coro?



## talisker10 (Nov 6, 2015)

I smoked my first coro yesterday. It was a very tasty cigar, great construction. I was told it was a fake, based on the band. What do you think?

This was bought from a tobacconist in Switzerland  for 21 Euros.


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## msmith1986 (Apr 24, 2017)

Man that band looks pretty good. The point of it being a fake IMO would be the white squares on top of the word cohiba are smaller, that variance says fake. 
I can't judge it because I rarely come into contact with those. We'll wait for some experts to wake up and take a look. 

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## msmith1986 (Apr 24, 2017)

Look at the spacing of the seven rows of white squares on this one that is known to be genuine. This pic is from cigar obsession. Black space between the gold and the white squares on top and bottom.









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## bpegler (Mar 30, 2006)

The road to insanity. Checking the squares on a Cohiba band.

If the Swiss shop is reputable, the cigar is likely authentic. If not, it's probably fake.

Another word of warning, gentlemen. There are fabulous authentic cigars with crappy looking bands. There are a ton of fakes with perfect bands.

I saw a mention on a similar thread that the heads looked suspicious on some cigars.

Really? lol . It's virtually impossible to identify the authenticity of a Havana by how it is rolled. Some of the worst rolled cigars I've ever seen were Havanas during the cigar boom years. QC is spotty even today.

Again, buy the seller. Not the cigar.

Without naming names, if I walked into a Swiss tobacconist that was selling fakes, I would be very surprised.


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

bpegler said:


> the road to insanity. Checking the squares on a cohiba band.
> 
> If the swiss shop is reputable, the cigar is likely authentic. If not, it's probably fake.
> 
> ...


_this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_


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## Pag#11 (Apr 14, 2018)

Many people don't smoke Cubans in fear of there quality control. Maybe I been lucky but I've had more issues with NC's . Cohiba and Montecristo are the most popular brands in the world. Cuba relies on these brands. Will some have imperfections definitely probably everyday in the factories. Would imagine it gets very boring putting bands on and packaging smokes. I am gonna go with @bpegler on this one . Especially since you bought it at a Swiss shop. If you enjoyed the cigar that's all that counts. Try another one sometime soon.

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## Bird-Dog (Oct 16, 2009)

I don't often disagree with @bpegler, but simply being purchased in Switzerland is no guarantee, and the Montes mentioned from the other thread were way beyond normal variances (not to mention coming from the same source as a box of Cohibas that we fake). Sorry Bob!

The band on this one does raise some question, but I'm not sure either way.


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## bpegler (Mar 30, 2006)

curmudgeonista said:


> I don't often disagree with @bpegler, but simply being purchased in Switzerland is no guarantee, and the Montes mentioned from the other thread were way beyond normal variances (not to mention coming from the same source as a box of Cohibas that we fake). Sorry Bob!
> .


No need to apologize, my friend! Just to be clear, I think I said:



bpegler said:


> If the Swiss shop is reputable, the cigar is likely authentic. If not, it's probably fake.


My point is that these sorts of threads are ultimately self defeating, because trying to determine the authenticity of a cigar after you have already purchased it is backwards. It's a lot simpler to buy authentic cigars in the first place from a trusted source.

And for you new guys, the best way to check on a source you're not sure about is simply to ask Habanos SA! HSA has a list of distributors on their website. Find the distributor for the region your source is located in. Then email the Regional HSA distributor and ask if the specific vendor is selling authentic Havanas provided by HSA. They will email you back in a day or two with a definitive answer.

I do this myself when I hear about a new vendor.

Even grey market vendors, if they sell real Cubans, get their cigars through HSA. HSA is the sole distributor of all regular production Cuban cigars.


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## GOT14U (May 12, 2017)

I just ask @curmudgeonista ....even tho typing his name in correctly is very time consuming!!!!! lmao


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## Pag#11 (Apr 14, 2018)

GOT14U said:


> I just ask @curmudgeonista ....even tho typing his name in correctly is very time consuming!!!!! lmao


He already answered. 2 posts up .

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## GOT14U (May 12, 2017)

Ya I know.... 


Pag#11 said:


> He already answered. 2 posts up .
> 
> Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk


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## Bird-Dog (Oct 16, 2009)

bpegler said:


> No need to apologize, my friend! Just to be clear, I think I said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Very well said. Remember, though, airing these threads is also a learning experience for most (myself included). Granted, this one is a little different from the typical "_My friend brought these back from Cabo_" threads (although it wasn't clear if @*talisker10* bought it for himself or if it was brought to him by someone else).

Nevertheless, I think they serve a very good purpose and have opened a lot of people's eyes. Probably saved no small number of overly-enthusiastic vacationers from getting ripped-off... not all of them, of course, or we wouldn't continue to see the ongoing parade of them come through here. :smile2:


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## PTAaron (Sep 1, 2017)

bpegler said:


> No need to apologize, my friend! Just to be clear, I think I said:
> 
> My point is that these sorts of threads are ultimately self defeating, because trying to determine the authenticity of a cigar after you have already purchased it is backwards. It's a lot simpler to buy authentic cigars in the first place from a trusted source.
> 
> ...


Unfortunately they don't always get back with you... I've tried on 2 occasions before going on trips to contact them to determine if shops were legit with no response. 
Just throwing that out there.


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## bpegler (Mar 30, 2006)

curmudgeonista said:


> Nevertheless, I think they serve a very good purpose and have opened a lot of people's eyes. Probably saved no small number of overly-enthusiastic vacationers from getting ripped-off... not all of them, of course, or we wouldn't continue to see the ongoing parade of them come through here. :smile2:


Of course you're absolutely right. I imagine that a big part of a forum like this is to steer BOTLs away from the "special deals" available at every port of call when vacationing outside of the country. They look so tempting...

I'm a bit concerned that some of the more recent posts sound like our friends are purchasing from individuals, rather than a vendor. And as you have correctly pointed out, the cigars they're purchasing are fakes.

Buying from an individual is much more problematic than buying from a large shop or vendor. And unfortunately even seasoned BOTLs get ripped off from time to time by someone offering a special deal on rare cigars.

Somewhere in the Puff archives I have a post with my experience smoking a "pre release Cohiba EL" sold on the secondary market by a gentleman who went by the handle "Triple Ligero". My assessment was that it tasted like a custom roll, not a Cohiba. Before smoking one, I thought his stuff was very possibly genuine. Unfortunately TL sold thousands, maybe tens of thousands of dollars of fake cigars to members here and elsewhere. They weren't sold on this board, but plenty here bought them.

So to make a long story just a bit longer, if you're new, and want to smoke real Havanas, avoid vendors in tourist spots, and don't buy from individuals. Wait until you know some trusted vendors.


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## talisker10 (Nov 6, 2015)

curmudgeonista said:


> Very well said. Remember, though, airing these threads is also a learning experience for most (myself included). Granted, this one is a little different from the typical "_My friend brought these back from Cabo_" threads (although it wasn't clear if @*talisker10* bought it for himself or if it was brought to him by someone else).
> 
> Nevertheless, I think they serve a very good purpose and have opened a lot of people's eyes. Probably saved no small number of overly-enthusiastic vacationers from getting ripped-off... not all of them, of course, or we wouldn't continue to see the ongoing parade of them come through here. :smile2:


Actually, my wife picked up 2 sticks on her travels, from the same vendor. One was the above mentioned coro, and the other is lying in my tup, a BRC. Now I'm having doubts about that BRC... I'll post a pic of it close up.

Regarding the coro though, the band is so good, that I doubt I would've noticed had I bought it myself.


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

talisker10 said:


> Actually, my wife picked up 2 sticks on her travels, from the same vendor. One was the above mentioned coro, and the other is lying in my tup, a BRC. Now I'm having doubts about that BRC... I'll post a pic of it close up.
> 
> Regarding the coro though, the band is so good, that I doubt I would've noticed had I bought it myself.


I trust you enjoyed the Seegar IMHO that's all that really matters. As Bob has said when one purchases Cubans provenance is everything. Band looks good to me as well, but what the hell do i know. :grin2: The proof is in the pudding if as i said you enjoyed the Seegar. The rest is really trivial at best. Peace my brother!:vs_cool:


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## Olecharlie (Oct 28, 2017)

There is a reputable place to purchase CC’s if you so desire, so we think anyway! The only CC that I am 100% sure of is the ones my Cuban friend brings some back from his home country of Cuba.


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## talisker10 (Nov 6, 2015)

The BRC looks legit.


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

Looks good to me enjoy.:vs_cool:


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## Three Lions (Jul 13, 2017)

There are a number of things wrong with the CoRo band in my opinion. Here is a photo of one of my CoRos purchased by me from À La Civette in Paris in a sealed box. The things that strike me as different are alignment related - supposedly the hardest thing to get right. The COHIBA box is too high - cutting off the row white boxes below the head and leaving a white gap above the yellow band. Also "Habana, Cuba" is not centered - it's too low in the yellow box.










Just my opinion of course.

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## scott1256ca (Jan 4, 2017)

@ThreeLions
even your band looks a little different from this.
https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/how-to-spot-a-fake-cohiba-19545
The gold on the head in yours is higher on the white background than the link. Your top gold band looks too close to the white squares. So there is probably some alignment variance that they allow on genuine bands. You can't really see the holograph on a computer monitor, but they look pretty good and that would be really tough to fake.

FYI, I'm assuming that the band on yours and the one from cigaraficionado are both real.


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## Three Lions (Jul 13, 2017)

scott1256ca said:


> @ThreeLions
> even your band looks a little different from this.
> https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/how-to-spot-a-fake-cohiba-19545
> The gold on the head in yours is higher on the white background than the link. Your top gold band looks too close to the white squares. So there is probably some alignment variance that they allow on genuine bands. You can't really see the holograph on a computer monitor, but they look pretty good and that would be really tough to fake.
> ...


You are right. Alignment is the hardest thing to achieve consistently - even in genuine bands I assume. The holograms are a key feature. The only fake band I have ever seen in person had no holograms. Yes - I'm confident mine is real - unopened box from a very reputable vendor in Paris and the serial number on the seal checks out at the Habanos SA site.


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

bpegler said:


> Of course you're absolutely right. I imagine that a big part of a forum like this is to steer BOTLs away from the "special deals" available at every port of call when vacationing outside of the country. They look so tempting...
> 
> I'm a bit concerned that some of the more recent posts sound like our friends are purchasing from individuals, rather than a vendor. And as you have correctly pointed out, the cigars they're purchasing are fakes.
> 
> ...


I fully concur about buying from individuals.
Mr Magoo comes to mind.


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## Pag#11 (Apr 14, 2018)

TonyBrooklyn said:


> I fully concur about buying from individuals.
> Mr Magoo comes to mind.


What? Craigslist always has such great deals . Just recently I seen 12 Esplendidos and a small wineador for $100 . Unreal in so many ways.

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